HEAD HEART HANDS

CONSULTATION AND COLLABORATIONWHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN??? There have been major changes for families

and their children in our society over the last few decades

Families have become more diverse in their structure and background

There are more families with multiple and complex needs.

Parenting young children has become a more complex and more stressful business for many families

There are less resources including specialist support to support these families (Carpenter, 2005 and Moore,2008 )

INCREASE IN NUMBERS OF CHILDRENWITH COMPLEX NEEDS

With technological progress and developments in medical practice, the survival rates of neonates is increasing.

Only 22% of children born at 25 weeks and

under will have no disability at age 6 with 46%

having a moderate to severe level of disability.

(Carpenter,2005)

INCREASE IN THE RATE OF DIAGNOSEDAUTISM

Over recent years there has been a major stillunexplained rise in the rate of diagnosed autism. Part of the explanation for this is to be found inbetter ascertainment and a broadening of thediagnostic concept. However this does notexplain the rapid rise in diagnosed Autism.

In Australia, Aspect says 1 in a 160 children are on

the ASD spectrum.

WIDESPREAD ACCEPTANCEOF INCLUSION There have also been major changes

and awidespread acceptance of the inclusionand full participation of children withdisabilities in all aspects of life includingearly childhood settings and mainstreamschools (Foreman, 2008).

WHAT IS OUR JOB HERE? There is clearly no longer any doubt

aboutwhether inclusion for children with

disabilitiesand complex needs is feasible the question is how one candesign programs to maximise theireffectiveness

Adapted from Guralnick, 2005.

CHALLENGE? WHAT JUST ONE MORE WAFER THIN CHALLENGE??? One of the challenges of serving children

ininclusive settings is the increased numberof key players and the need and difficultyof coordinating the services andcommunication among them.

Inclusion will require ongoing collaborationand team work and new ways of working(Foreman 2008)

COLLABORATION…DO I HAVE THE SKILLS????

THE THREE BIGGIES Collaboration – working together in

teams and collaborative partnerships

Consultation - a move away from moretraditional expert ‘hands on’ models to moreindirect models such as collaborativeconsultation.

Communication - improved communication skills and relationship building

IT LOOKS EASY BUT… Research has shown thatpractitioners are not adequately trained orprepared to work with adults and otherpractitioners either working in: the consultant’s role (special educationteachers and therapists) or as the consultee (parents, teachers andteacher’s aides)

(Buysse & Wesley, 2007).

MEETING NEEDS…‘If the complex needs of families today

areto be met, a coordinated and coherentapproach is necessary. This approachrequires new ways of working that areneither multidisciplinary norinterdisciplinary but are trans-disciplinary’ (Carpenter, 2005, p.31).

BARRIERS…

ARE YOU READY FOR A PARTNERSHIP?? Bruder (2000) stated the ‘most

important reason for the lack of implementation of family centred early intervention may be the attitudes of those in early intervention who still see themselves as expert’ and the family as the ‘client’.

Bundy, A. (2008) The Therapy Services in the Disability

Sector: Literature Review

BUT GUESS WHAT??? WE ARE BACK TO THE BEGINNING OF THE CYCLE… Know yourself first…

Tutorials will look more deeply at the skills and the processes for collaboration in order to best support the learning of students with special/complex learning needs

References Bundy, A. (2008) The Therapy Services in the Disability Sector: Literature Review. NSW Department of Ageing, Disability & Home Care. Buysse, V. & Wesley,P.(2007). Consultation in early childhood settings. Paul H Brookes Publishing, Marylands. Buysse, V. & Wesley,P.(2008). Consultation in early childhood settings. Workshop National Early Childhood Conference, Sydney. Carpenter, B. (2005), Real prospects for early childhood intervention: Family aspirations and professional implications. In Carpenter, B. & Egerton, J. (Eds.), Early Childhood Intervention. International Perspectives, National Initiatives And Regional Practice. West Midlands SEN Regional Partnership. Great Britain. Cook, R.; Klein,M. & Tessier, A. (2008). Adapting early childhood curricula with special needs. Pearson, Merrill, Prentice Hall, USA. Coben, S.; Thomas,C.; Sattler,R. & Voelker Morsink (1997) Meeting the challenge of consultation and collaboration: Developing interactive teams. Journal of Learning Disabilities. V 30, Number 4 July /August Davies, S (2007). Team Around the Child: Working together in early childhood intervention. Quick Print: Wagga Wagga, Australia Guralnick, M. J. (2005), The Developmental Systems Approach to Early Intervention, Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co, Baltimore, Maryland. Foreman, P. (2008). Inclusion in Action. Cengage Learning Australia Hanft, B.; Rush, D. & Sheldon,M.(2004).Coaching families and colleagues in early childhood. Paul H Brookes; Baltimore. Honey, P. & Mumford, A. (2000). The learning styles helper's guide. Maidenhead: Peter Honey Publications Ltd. Kolb D. (1984). Experiential learning: experience as the source of learning and development. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Kolb D. (1999). The Kolb Learning Style Inventory, Version 3. Boston: Hay Group. Moore, T. (2007). Early Childhood Intervention Coordination - Project Professional Development Project. Centre for Community Health, Melbourne Moore, T (2008). Beyond the evidence: Building universal services from the ground up. Pauline McGregor Memorial Address, ECIA National Conference. Sydney. Spedding, S.(2008) The role of teachers in successful inclusion. In Foreman, P. (2008). Inclusion in Action. Cengage Learning Australia